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North Iowa Takes Brunt of Weekend Storm

(ABC 6 NEWS) -- Portions of northeast Iowa got hit hard by last night's storms, mostly in Mitchell county.  Several roads are closed due to flooding, and in Charles City, the Cedar River is still rising.

"Right now, we're at about 15 feet as a stage, and it's rising fairly rapidly," Charles City Fire Chief Eric Whipple told us.

Residents in Charles City are on high alert as the Cedar River continues to overflow it's banks.

"We're just trying to get the word out that the flooding is going to be taking place and we're working on notifying, even going door to door," Whipple said.

When the Cedar River hits 18 feet, it's considered to be at major flood stage. Monday night, it's expected to crest around 20 feet.

Over in Osage, crews are assessing damage from flooding that happened last night.

Heavy Rain Causes Flooding/More Storms Today

Persistent, heavy rainfall Sunday evening has led to flooding in many spots in southern Minnesota and Northern Iowa, especially Mitchell and Mower counties. Numerous roads have been impacted by high water and rivers are running out of their banks in spots. Radar estimates point to 3 to 7" of rain fell in parts of Mitchell and Mower counties.

More rain is in the forecast for again today for northern Iowa, as a very slow-moving storm system continues to impact the area. The potential is there for another round of severe weather across SE MN & northern IA later this afternoon and evening, mainly along and to the east of I-35. Main threats with any storms that fire up later today will be large damaging hail, strong damaging winds, very heavy rain, and an isolated tornado or two later this afternoon and evening.

Strong/Severe Storms Possible Sunday & Monday

Skies will try to clear up early in the day Sunday, allowing for the atmosphere to become pretty unstable. We're tracking storms to fire up across northern Iowa around 1-4 p.m. on Sunday, lasting through the evening. These storms will pose the risk of heavy rain, large damaging hail, strong damaging winds, and even a few isolated tornadoes.  Flash flooding will also be a concern as the ground is now fairly well soaked from Friday's rain.  Chris and I will be tracking the threat on Sunday.

A second round of strong to severe storms will be possible on Monday afternoon. This time the threat will be found primarily across extreme SE MN & NE IA. Main threats will once again include heavy rain, large damaging hail, strong damaging winds, and even a few isolated tornadoes.

Mason City State Patrol to Get Military Humvee for Emergencies

(ABC 6 NEWS) -- A gift by the military is going to benefit the entire state of Iowa.  Part of a transfer program, the National Guard will be giving 8 humvees to the State Patrol at no cost. One will be stationed in Mason City.

Following the blizzard that crippled parts of the state this past December, a call was made find a better solution to respond to these harsh winter conditions.  The new vehicles will help solve that problem.

The State Patrol Division will coordinate the readiness of the Humvees and station the vehicles across the state for rapid deployment during blizzards, flooding, tornadoes, and other disaster or critical incident related operations.  During these deployments, more than 80 sworn members across Department stand ready to operate the Humvees to augment the Department’s uniformed response.

Scattered Storms Today, Severe Weather Possible Sunday

Scattered showers and thunderstorms will continue on and off throughout northern Iowa today. It looks like the activity will wind down though later this afternoon.

The slow-moving storm system responsible for today's storms is one that will stay with us well into next week, continuing the rain chances.  We will get a brief break from the rain though tonight into Saturday.

On and off showers and storms are expected Sunday and Monday.  We are tracking the potential for severe weather across Northern Iowa during this time frame as well, especially on Sunday afternoon/evening. Large hail, damaging winds, and isolated tornadoes could be possible! We'll continue to monitor the scenario.

Sunny & 80 Today, Stormy Friday

A sunny Thursday with a high right around 80° today across northern Iowa, with the rain holding off until well after sunset. This will be just the beginning of a very active weather pattern, as another slow-moving storm system impacts the Upper Midwest through the weekend, even into next Tuesday!

Showers and thunderstorms emerge late Thursday and continue into Friday.  It's enough to keep the temps cooler, in the lower 70s across north central and northeast Iowa on Friday.

The weekend will be on and off rain, with temperatures warming back up into the 80s both days. The setup looks favorable for some strong to severe storms to develop.  Too early for the details though, but as always we will be tracking it, so stay tuned!

Iowa Lawmakers Appear Close to Concluding Session

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Iowa lawmakers appear close to concluding the 2013 legislative session, though they may put a health care debate on hold.